


Nightmare

by sunny_impalas



Series: Tumblr Stories [8]
Category: The Outsiders - All Media Types, The Outsiders - S. E. Hinton
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Crying, Dead Parents, Depressing, Implied Relationships, Nightmares, Other, Pre-Canon, Pre-Relationship, Sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-20
Updated: 2019-02-20
Packaged: 2019-11-01 09:12:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17864570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunny_impalas/pseuds/sunny_impalas
Summary: Darry has a nightmare, and Two-Bit hears him.





	Nightmare

_Everyone was too close. The crowd was too big and he felt like he was choking. He couldn’t make out anyone’s faces, they were like children's drawings. He couldn’t breathe, but he wasn’t blacking out. Why wasn’t he blacking out? Shouldn’t he be blacking out? He was scared, he didn’t get scared._

_He was being pushed somewhere, the crowd was forcing him this way and that. He felt like he was going to be sick, but nothing was coming up. He didn’t know whether or not to be thankful for that. If he threw up, the crowd would probably get away from him, but if he did he’d have to deal with the embarrassment of having thrown up in front of such a large crowd._

_Suddenly, he was pushed towards the front of the crowd, and he immediately wanted to go back in. The bodies seemed almost faceless, but he knew who they were. They were his friends and his family, he recognized the lifeless forms of them. His heart dropped down to his feet. He started to back away from them, but the crowd seemed to keep pushing him forward._

_He didn’t want to face them he didn’t want to, he wanted to run, and maybe he was a coward for that. He couldn’t bring himself to care, he just wanted to get away from the corpses of his loved ones. The crowd kept whispering something under their breath, he couldn’t make it out though._

_He was about five feet away from the pile of bodies when their heads shot up, their eyes lifeless, defeated, blind almost. But their heads were all turned towards him, and then they started talking. They kept saying how it was his fault, but he didn’t know what was his fault. He kept trying to turn but the crowd behind him had surrounded him on all sides besides the front and were pushing him to stumble closer to the seemingly reanimated corpses._

_He was about to touch the one in front of him when the crowd surged forward, surrounding him again. He started to feel like he was choking again and he thought he heard his friends start to scream, and he wanted to get to them, but-_

But he woke up. He sat straight up in his bed, his breathing was heavy and his cheeks were wet. He swallowed and pushed himself next to the headboard, grabbing his pillow from under himself and holding it to his chest. He slowly regained control of his breathing.

It was just a dream, nothing to worry about. He kept repeating that phrase to himself in his head like a mantra. He swallowed again and looked towards his closed door. He ran his hands over his face, pushing the heels of his palms into his eyes to try and stop the tears from streaming down his face.

He jumped when the door opened, the light from now streaming into his bedroom. He stared at the shadowed figure standing in his doorway. He could tell he was wearing a leather jacket, but other than that he had no clue who it was.

“Dar? You okay?” Two-Bit asked, his voice didn’t sound as upbeat and carefree as it usually did, it sounded concerned, and that was what was freaking Darry out the most.

"I’m fine, Two,” Darry muttered, holding the pillow close to his chest, crossing his arms over it defensively, “what’re you doin’ in my house?”

“Figured I’d stop by, and when I walk in I hear someone yell down the hall. So, really Darry, what’s up?” The redhead asked, closing the door halfway behind him as he walked further into the room, sitting on the edge of the bed closest to Darry.

Darry shook his head, “I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not.”

The older man sighed irritably and looked at Two-Bit’s side profile, the dim light of the room barely illuminating his face. “Why do you care anyway?”

Two-Bit scoffed and turned to face Darry, “Gee, I dunno, maybe ‘cause you’re my friend, you’re parents died what, two weeks ago? And I walk into your house and hear ya yellin’ because of a nightmare?”

Darry went quiet, gripping the pillow tighter. Two-Bit kept looking at him, hoping he’d say something. He knew how stressed Darry had been the past couple of weeks, having to pick up two jobs, choosing not to go to college, and planning the funeral which had been just a week ago. Making sure Pony and Soda were okay, kind of moving from a big brother to a caretaker instead.

Finally, Darry mumbled something, but it was too quiet for Two-Bit to hear. He leaned forward, quietly saying, “What was that?”  
  
“I said I had a nightmare.” Darry said again, he sounded reluctant to talk about it, like it was the biggest stress of the world to just talk about his bottled up emotions for once since the beginning of this whole thing.

Two-Bit sighed, “You wanna talk about it?”

Darry shook his head, not wanting to say anything about how he had seen the other man’s corpse alongside their friends. He didn’t want to talk about it because recently it seemed like he couldn’t seem weak. He was supposed to be strong for his brothers, that’s what everybody else was saying. His aunts and uncles kept saying their condolences while saying he had to be brave for his brothers. He had to stay strong.

Nobody said it was okay for him to feel things, nobody said it was okay for him to be angry, or sad. Nobody said he could scream or cry. Nobody said any of that, all he got to do was be strong for his brothers. He didn’t feel brave though, he was barely twenty, how could he raise a sixteen-year-old and a thirteen-year-old? He had barely been able to get enough sleep to function since he had picked up his second job.

He was terrified, really. What if the state took them away? What if one of them died? He shook the thought away and shoved his face into his pillow, he didn’t want to look at Two-Bit. He felt some tears start to prick at the corners of his eyes, he didn’t want the younger man to see that. He could deal with it himself, at least that’s what everyone else thought. They saw him as a lot older and a lot more mature than a nineteen-year-old turned twenty.

Two-Bit studied Darry as he curled in onto himself. He looked a lot more scared in this light. He looked almost fragile, and that didn’t sit right with him. Darry was the strong one, wasn’t he? At least that’s what he thought. Darry seemed to have been closed off since his parents died. The brunet had never been too open with his feelings, but he didn’t feel like a brick wall. He didn’t laugh as much, he didn’t smile as wide. He didn’t smile that smile where his tongue poked out between his teeth.

He reached his hand out to touch the other’s knee, hesitating for only a second before resting his hand on it. The action got Darry to look up, the sad and watery look in his eyes didn’t sit well with him. He looked like a little kid who’s comfort object had just been taken away. Two-Bit didn’t know what to do, he wasn’t good at dealing with emotions like these. He usually just drowned them in alcohol or laughter.

 _Hey, that might work._ Two-Bit thought for a second before asking, “You wanna hear a joke?” He smiled at Darry, hoping the other would do the same.

“Okay.”

Two-Bit’s smile grew into a wide grin as he asked the lead-up question, “Who do you call when the ocean needs some cleanin’?”

Darry’s lips quirked at the corners of his mouth as he said, “I dunno.”

“A mermaid of course!” Two-Bit said, laughing at his own joke.

Darry laughed softly, and Two-Bit figured he’d have to settle for that. But it wasn’t Darry’s snorty laugh, it wasn’t the laugh he only used when the redhead told dumb jokes like that. That wasn’t his laugh, it was someone else's. Someone who was scared to express anything. And he still looked small, and he didn’t like that.

He really didn’t like that.

“You wanna talk now?” He asked softly, scooting slightly closer to the blue-eyed man.

Darry bit his lip nervously. He really didn’t want to talk about the dream. The images still somewhat floating through his mind and behind his eyelids whenever he blinked. He couldn’t shake the picture of the man in front of him, hanging limply and spitting insults at him. He didn’t want to admit how scared he was, not just by the dream but just in general. His life had been turned upside down within two weeks, and everybody else seemed to think he was fine. Why couldn’t the younger man think so too?

He was about to say that he was fine when he caught Two-Bit’s eyes. They held each other’s stare for a few minutes, and Darry’s heart tugged when he saw how hopeful he looked. He sighed and nodded slightly, bringing his knees closer to his chest. In his head he was going over how he could avoid specifics of the dream, trying to think of a way to glaze over the fact that he had dreamt of his friends all dead, and then coming back to life just to say it was his fault. He still didn’t know what they meant by that.

Darry swallowed and began to speak, “It was, um, kind of weird. There was this huge crowd and… and um..” He stumbled over his words, his nerves and memories choosing to screw him over. He had gotten most of his personality from his mother, including his jumpy nerves.

Two-Bit smiled at him comfortingly, his hand still on his knee. He hoped Darry knew he wasn’t going to make fun of him or anything like that. He just wanted him to get rid of at least a little bit of the emotions he’s been repressing for the past few weeks. Even if he knew that if they overflowed, he’d be pretty useless at helping.

Darry took a breath to calm himself down before resuming what he was saying. “There, there was a crowd. I think I said that already, but, uh, I felt like I was… choking? That’s the best way to put it. A-and then the crowd pushed me to the outskirts of it and I-I saw you guys, but you were… you were uh, you were dead.” Darry’s voice quieted at the end. As if he was ashamed to admit it.

The redhead’s eyebrows furrowed, “Dead? As in like, dead, no comin’ back dead?”

Darry nodded and swallowed again, forcing his emotions to stay down. “Yeah, and then you guy’s heads popped up, and you kept sayin’ h-how it was my fault. I dunno what that meant, but then the crowd started pushin’ me towards ya, ‘nd I was about t-to touch you when I woke up.”

Two-Bit was quiet, and Darry started to curl back into himself. He shouldn’t have said that. And now Two-Bit was going to laugh at him for getting upset over a nightmare and he was just going to tell him to suck it up. And that’s what he _has_ been doing, and he’s been trying so hard to do just that, but he felt like he was a pin’s drop away to just have a breakdown. And that was the absolute _last_ thing he wanted.

The younger man noticed and he felt his heart crack at the defensive move. Darry didn’t trust him. At least not enough to let this new wall he built at least have a door and a key. Two-Bit wasn’t mad at him for having the dream, it’s not like he could help it. Darry looked like a scared little kid, and it was a look he didn’t like on him.

“I’m not mad at ya, Dar. It’s fine to get upset over a dream like that.” Two-Bit said, his voice soft. Almost like he was worried he’d scare Darry away, like a wounded animal.

Darry sighed and glanced up at Two-Bit. He studied his face to try and find any hint of a lie, but he found none. When he realized how serious he was about how he wasn’t upset and how it’s fine to be upset over the dream he felt some tears start to sting at the corners of his eyes.

“Thanks.” He whispered, his voice cracking slightly. He tried to swallow the tears, he didn’t want to start crying. And especially not in front of Two-Bit. Two-Bit didn’t even know how to cry, everybody knew that. He’d forgotten too young, way too young.

Two-Bit stuck his jaw out forward, Darry was still hiding behind this wall. He sighed and kicked off his boots, crawling to sit next to Darry close to the headboard. They were quiet. It seemed like they were scared of ruining the fragile calm that had washed over the room. They had both trailed off into their own thoughts.

“I miss my parents.”

Two-Bit looked over at the sudden comment. He studied Darry’s face in the low light, he looked melancholic and lost almost. It was weird to see him like this, and he wanted to help he just didn’t know how. He wished he knew how, he wanted to know how, God knows he wanted to know. He’d do anything to make Darry laugh and smile like he used to.

He slowly nodded, “I know, Dar, we all do.”

Darry laughed dryly, “Of course you do. Let me guess, next you’re going to tell me I need to be strong for Sodapop and Ponyboy?”

The younger man was taken aback by the harsh answer. Did Darry really think he was just going to brush off his feelings like that? he seemed like he was a pins drop away to his walls coming crashing down and his emotions flowing out like an overfilled dam. He slowly brought his hand to rest on the brunet’s shoulder, swallowing when he felt how hard he was shaking.

Darry looked up at him, and Two-Bit saw how watery his aquamarine eyes were. Two-Bit froze, he didn’t know what he was supposed to do now. Was he supposed to give him a hug? Tell him it was going to be okay? Leave? He shoved that last thought away, that was the last thing he was going to do, just leave Darry alone with his thoughts like this.

“Dar, it’s alright if you’re not, ya know, _okay_. It’s okay if you’re upset.” Two-Bit whispered, hoping he was being comforting.

Darry stared at Two-Bit, more tears starting to fill up his eyes. He felt one start to trail down his cheek. He quickly wiped it away with the back of his hand. He sniffed and looked forward at the wall in front of them. He was zoned out, trapped in his thoughts. He didn’t take any note of the new tears starting to stream down his face.

Two-Bit swallowed as he saw Darry start to silently sob, he felt like running. Would Darry notice if he left? What would happen when they would inevitably have to confront each other the next day? He shook his head minutely. Darry’d probably just act like nothing had happened, like he hadn’t seen him break down, and he couldn’t let that happen. He didn’t want Darry to act like he was okay, that his parent’s death hadn’t bothered him. He _couldn’t_ let that happen.

Darry wasn’t okay. Two-Bit could see that now, he was so _broken_ . Why did he, why did _anyone_ think Darry was okay? His parents had died. Two-Bit swallowed and awkwardly put his arm around Darry’s shoulder. Now what did he do? Say sorry? No, that’s too cheesy. Cliché. Of everyone he knew, Darry’s the one who’d be the absolute last to appreciate a cliché. Only second to Dally, even then, it’s pretty much a tie. They were both quiet, the only sound in the room were Darry’s quiet sobs.

Finally, Darry said something, “You’re the first one to say I could feel something over this whole mess.” his voice was soft and shaky. The tears could be clearly heard, even in his voice.

Two-Bit looked at Darry, he looked even scarder and smaller now that he was crying. He hated the look on him.

“‘M sorry Dar, somebody shoulda told ya sooner.” Two-Bit murmured, gently squeezing Darry’s shoulder.

Darry cleared his throat and shrugged his shoulders to get the redhead’s arm off of him. He swallowed and managed a shaky smile at him and pat his shoulder.

“You’re a good friend, Two.” He confessed, he had seemingly calmed down. Although, there were still a few stray tears slipping down his cheeks. He was going to have to get ready for work soon.

“Yeah, you sure you’re okay?” Two-Bit asked, studying Darry’s face. His hand twitched to wipe away the last few tears streaming down the brunets face, but he stopped himself in time.

After a few seconds of awkward silence Two-Bit got up and walked to the door. Before leaving the room he paused at the doorway and looked back at Darry.

He smiled at him and said, “You get some more sleep. I’ll grab some breakfast from McDonalds.”

“I couldn’t ask that of you.”

“I didn’t ask, now did I?”

Darry broke out into a grin, that special one where his tongue poked out between his teeth and Two-Bit’s heart melted. That’s what had been missing all of these weeks. He waved and walked out of the room, closing the door gently and walking out of the room to his car. It was just McDonalds, it was the least he could do. Darry deserved it anyways.

**Author's Note:**

> If you thought this wasn't complete shit, comment and leave a kudos it makes me feel good :)


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